Etymology

ippon

I1P3P3O1N1

Today it means: The highest score in judo, awarded for a throw that places the opponent on their back with impetus or for holding the opponent on their back for a number of seconds. Full definition →

Japanese 一本
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The story

  1. Japanese · borrowed from一本“one full point”
  2. English todayippon

Borrowed from Japanese 一本 (“one full point”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.